FeedsSchool of Choice plan is expanded
Romulus Community Schools Board of Education members voted Monday night to allow kindergarten through eighth graders who live outside district borders to attend classes at all district facilities.
Schools of Choice, the statewide plan that allows schools to pursue students living in other districts, was first introduced in Romulus two years ago at Wick Elementary.
Last year, another facility began offering the program at both Wick and Halecreek schools, and now, all four elementary schools and the junior high school will have 10 open slots per grade, said Carl Weiss, superintendent of schools.
“What happened last year is that we had too many students at the facilities we advertised,” he said. “This strategically is a little different – we can place the students at any building where we have the room.”
Last year, the district enrolled 38 students through Schools of Choice, and hopes to fill all of the new slots through a comprehensive advertising campaign that will run this summer, Weiss said.
“There is a two-week window for enrollment, and we’ll do some advertising,” he said.
District estimates indicate that the schools will net about $700,000 if all of the slots are filled, Weiss said.
Romulus Community Schools rejected Schools of Choice after the introduction of the program under former superintendent Joel Carr.
The funding structure for schools – combined with competition created by charter schools in the area – has placed districts in a situation where they must constantly strive to lure students. The Romulus district receives about $9,000 in per-students funding, and will receive the lion’s share of the funding for each student that enrolls in the district.
But Weiss – who created one of the most aggressive choice districts when he was deputy superintendent of the Dearborn 7 District – convinced the board that not accepting outside enrollees would place the district at a competitive disadvantage.
Outside students have caused a commotion in the community at times, however.
In 2005, angry parents converged on a school board meeting to protest the number of outside students at the district because many felt that those families did not pay comparatively high school taxes.
Weiss said he believes the program has been explained to residents in a way that will encourage their support.
“I think everyone knows that all of the schools around us are doing this,” he said. “We haven’t had any complaints since we started taking students, so we have a lot of support.”
